Umbrella

ABSTRACT

An improved umbrella is a handheld umbrella which protects the user from the sun and inclement weather, with a switch on the handle to illuminate streaming or solid lights along the borders for decorative and safety purposes. The umbrella is able to emit a sound with the push of a button in case of emergency. The lights help a person be seen at night or in inclement weather.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application is related to and claims priority from priorprovisional application Ser. No. 62/349,379, filed Jun. 13, 2016 whichapplication is incorporated herein by reference.

COPYRIGHT NOTICE

A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains materialwhich is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has noobjection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent documentor the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and TrademarkOffice patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyrightrights whatsoever. 37 CFR 1.71(d).

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The following includes information that may be useful in understandingthe present invention(s). It is not an admission that any of theinformation provided herein is prior art, or material, to the presentlydescribed or claimed inventions, or that any publication or documentthat is specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.

1. FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to the field of umbrella devicesand more specifically relates to an illuminated umbrella devicecomprising a handheld umbrella that has an on/off switch to illuminatestreaming or solid lights. The lights may be useful for inclementweather, to help a person be seen at night, or for decorative purposes.Also, the lights may illuminate at the top and sides of the umbrella.

2. DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART

An umbrella or parasol is a folding canopy supported by wooden or metalribs, which is mounted on a wooden, metal or plastic pole. It isdesigned to protect a person against rain or sunlight. The word“umbrella” typically refers to a device used for protection from rain.The word parasol usually refers to an item designed to protect from thesun. Often the difference is the material used for the canopy; someparasols are not waterproof. Umbrella canopies may be made of fabric orflexible plastic.

Umbrellas and parasols are primarily hand-held portable devices sizedfor personal use. The largest hand-portable umbrellas are golfumbrellas. Umbrellas can be divided into two categories: fullycollapsible umbrellas, in which the metal pole supporting the canopyretracts, making the umbrella small enough to fit in a handbag, andnon-collapsible umbrellas in which the support pole cannot retract; onlythe canopy can be collapsed. Another distinction can be made betweenmanually operated umbrellas and spring-loaded automatic umbrellas whichspring open at the press of a button.

Various attempts have been made to solve the above-mentioned problemssuch as those found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,848,831 to Akira Tatsumi; U.S.Pat. No. 6,341,873 to Chiu-Hsiung Yang; and U.S. Publication No.2009/0260663 to Carlos J. Lewis. This art is representative of umbrellashaving illumination means. None of the above inventions and patents,taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the inventionas claimed.

Ideally, an umbrella should provide protection from rain and sun, beversatile enough to carry, and sturdy enough to have a long usage life,and, yet would operate reliably and be manufactured at a modest expense.Thus, a need exists for a reliable improved umbrella to avoid theabove-mentioned problems.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known umbrellaart, the present invention provides a novel improved umbrella. Thegeneral purpose of the present invention, which will be describedsubsequently in greater detail is to provide an illuminated umbrelladevice comprising a handheld umbrella that has an on/off switch toilluminate streaming or solid lights. The lights may be useful forinclement weather, to help a person be seen at night, or for decorativepurposes.

An improved umbrella is disclosed herein comprising an elongated shaftmember including a handle member on a proximal end having a computercircuit board member, and a power source formed as at least onerechargeable battery member located within an interior portion which isadapted to control an electric current passing through; and a buttonmember mounted on the outside of the handle member which is connected tothe computer circuit board member and the power source, and is connectedto electrical wiring within the elongated shaft member and extendsbeyond the length of it and out from a distal end. A series of lightmembers formed as light emitting diodes are adapted to emit colorschosen from a group of colors consisting of red, white, blue, green, andorange, are electrically connected to one another and to an outer edgeof the canopy member thereby encircling the canopy member.

The series of light members are electrically connected to the electricalwiring from the elongated shaft member to receive electrical currentfrom the power source within the handle member to be selectively turnedon and off by the button member. The handle member further includes asound emitting member electrically connected to the button member andadapted to emit an emergency alarm sound when the button is pushedtwice. The computer circuit board member is adapted to control the flowof electricity from the button member to the series of light members,such that individual series of light members can be turned on and off atchosen intervals to signal an emergency if necessary.

A releasable retainer is located on an upper section of the elongatedshaft member in proximity to the distal end, and is adapted to hold aring member in an open position. The ring member is adapted to slidealong the elongated shaft member and be retained at the upper section orthe lower section by a releasable retainer. A plurality of spacedelongated rib members are pivotally connected to the elongated shaftmember at the distal end and radiate outward from the center. A flexiblematerial canopy member chosen from a group of flexible materialsconsisting of nylon, plastic, and cotton is attached to the rib members.

Stretcher members are pivotally connected at respective distal ends tothe ring member, and are also pivotally connected at respective proximalends to a respective rib member, such that the flexible canopy membercan be stored in a collapsed position for storage around the elongatedshaft member, and also be opened and held in a fully extended and tautconfiguration adapted to withstand wind and rain. The rib members andstretcher members are formed from a material chosen from a group ofmaterials consisting of stainless steel, plastic, and aluminum, and theelongated shaft member is formed from a material chosen from a group ofmaterials consisting of stainless steel, plastic, aluminum, wood,fiberglass, and ceramic for durability.

The present invention holds significant improvements and serves as animproved umbrella. For purposes of summarizing the invention, certainaspects, advantages, and novel features of the invention have beendescribed herein. It is to be understood that not necessarily all suchadvantages may be achieved in accordance with any one particularembodiment of the invention. Thus, the invention may be embodied orcarried out in a manner that achieves or optimizes one advantage orgroup of advantages as taught herein without necessarily achieving otheradvantages as may be taught or suggested herein. The features of theinvention which are believed to be novel are particularly pointed outand distinctly claimed in the concluding portion of the specification.These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the presentinvention will become better understood with reference to the followingdrawings and detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The figures which accompany the written portion of this specificationillustrate embodiments and method(s) of use for the present invention,improved umbrella constructed and operative according to the teachingsof the present invention.

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view illustrating an improved umbrellaaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view illustrating an improved umbrella according to anembodiment of the present invention of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a side view illustrating the electrical components and wiringof an improved umbrella according to an embodiment of the presentinvention of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is an exploded view illustrating an improved umbrella accordingto an embodiment of the present invention of FIG. 1.

The various embodiments of the present invention will hereinafter bedescribed in conjunction with the appended drawings, wherein likedesignations denote like elements.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As discussed above, embodiments of the present invention relate to anumbrella device and more particularly to an improved umbrella as used toprovide protection from the weather, which further has a switch on thehandle to illuminate streaming or solid LED lights along the border fordecorative and safety purposes, to be readily seen at night.

Generally speaking, improved umbrella is a handheld umbrella with aswitch on the handle to illuminate streaming or solid lights along theborders for decorative and safety purposes. The lights help a person beseen at night or in inclement weather. The umbrella is also able to emita sound with the push of a button in case of emergency.

Referring to the drawings by numerals of reference there is shown inFIG. 1, a perspective view illustrating an improved umbrella 100according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Improved umbrella 100 is disclosed herein comprising elongated shaftmember 106 including handle member 110 on a proximal end 112 havingcomputer circuit board member 116, and power source 124 formed as atleast one rechargeable battery member 130 located within interiorportion 138 which is adapted to control an electric current passingthrough; and button member 144 mounted on the outside of handle member110 which is connected to computer circuit board member 116 and powersource 124, and is connected to electrical wiring 150 within elongatedshaft member 106 and extends beyond the length of it and out from distalend 114. Series of light members 160 formed as light emitting diodes 162are adapted to emit colors chosen from a group of colors consisting ofred, white, blue, green, and orange, are electrically connected to oneanother and to outer edge 168 of canopy member 170 thereby encirclingcanopy member 170.

Referring now to FIG. 2, a side view illustrating an improved umbrellaaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

Series of light members 160 are electrically connected to electricalwiring 150 from elongated shaft member 106 to receive electrical currentfrom power source 124 within handle member 110 to be selectively turnedon and off by button member 144. Handle member 110 further includessound emitting member 120 electrically connected to button member 144and adapted to emit an emergency alarm sound when button member 144 ispushed twice. Computer circuit board member 116 is adapted to controlthe flow of electricity from button member 144 to series of lightmembers 160, such that individual series of light members 160 can beturned on and off at chosen intervals to signal an emergency ifnecessary.

Referring now to FIG. 3, a side view illustrating the electricalcomponents and wiring of an improved umbrella according to an embodimentof the present invention.

Releasable retainer 180 is located on an upper section 188 of elongatedshaft member 106 in proximity to distal end 114, and is adapted to holdring member 184 in an open position. Ring member 184 is adapted to slidealong elongated shaft member 106 and be retained at upper section 188 orlower section 190 by releasable retainer 180. The plurality of spacedelongated rib members 172 are pivotally connected to elongated shaftmember 106 at distal end 114 and radiate outward from the center.Flexible material 174 canopy member 170 chosen from a group of flexiblematerials 174 consisting of nylon, plastic, and cotton is attached tospaced elongated rib members 172.

Referring now to FIG. 4, an exploded view illustrating an improvedumbrella according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Stretcher members 178 are pivotally connected at respective distal endsto ring member 184, and are also pivotally connected at respectiveproximal ends to elongated rib members 172, such that flexible canopymember 170 can be stored in a collapsed position for storage aroundelongated shaft member 106, and also be opened and held in a fullyextended and taut configuration adapted to withstand wind and rain.Elongated rib members 172 and stretcher members 178 are formed from amaterial chosen from a group of materials consisting of stainless steel,plastic, and aluminum, and elongated shaft member 106 is formed from amaterial chosen from a group of materials consisting of stainless steel,plastic, aluminum, wood, fiberglass, and ceramic for durability.

Improved umbrella 100 may be manufactured and provided for sale in awide variety of sizes and shapes for a wide assortment of applications.Upon reading this specification, it should be appreciated that, underappropriate circumstances, considering such issues as design preference,user preferences, marketing preferences, cost, structural requirements,available materials, technological advances, arrangements such as, forexample, different orders within above-mentioned list, etc., may besufficient.

The embodiments of the invention described herein are exemplary andnumerous modifications, variations and rearrangements can be readilyenvisioned to achieve substantially equivalent results, all of which areintended to be embraced within the spirit and scope of the invention.Further, the purpose of the foregoing abstract is to enable the U.S.Patent and Trademark Office and the public generally, and especially thescientist, engineers and practitioners in the art who are not familiarwith patent or legal terms or phraseology, to determine quickly from acursory inspection the nature and essence of the technical disclosure ofthe application.

What is claimed is new and desired to be protected by Letters Patent isset forth in the appended claims:
 1. An improved umbrella comprising: anelongated shaft member including: a handle member on a proximal endthereof including; a button member thereon adapted to control anelectric current passing therethrough; and a power source located withinan interior portion thereof and electrically connected to said buttonmember; electrical wiring; wherein said electrical wiring is connectedto said button member and extends beyond the length of said elongatedshaft member and out from a distal end thereof; a releasable retainerlocated on an upper section thereof in proximity to said distal end; aflexible canopy member including: a plurality of spaced elongated ribmembers radiating outwardly from a center section thereof, and connectedtherewith; wherein said flexible canopy member is connected at its saidcenter section to said distal end of said elongated shaft member; a ringmember; wherein said ring member is adapted to slide along saidelongated shaft member and be releasably retained at said upper sectionthereof by said releasable retainer; a plurality of stretcher members;wherein each of said plurality of stretcher members are pivotallyconnected at respective distal ends to said ring member; and whereineach of said plurality of stretcher members are pivotally connected atrespective proximal ends to a respective said rib member, such that saidflexible canopy member can be stored in a collapsed position around saidelongated shaft member and also be opened and held in a fully extendedand taut configuration adapted to withstand wind and rain; and a seriesof light members; wherein said series of light members are electricallyconnected to one another and to an outer edge of said canopy memberthereby encircling said canopy member; and wherein said series of lightmembers are electrically connected to said electrical wiring to therebyreceive electrical current from said power source within said handlemember to thereby be selectively turned on and off by said buttonmember.
 2. The improved umbrella of claim 1, wherein said series oflight members are light emitting diodes.
 3. The improved umbrella ofclaim 2, wherein said light emitting diodes are adapted to emit colorschosen from a group of colors consisting of red, white, blue, green, andorange.
 4. The improved umbrella of claim 1, wherein said handle memberfurther includes a computer circuit board member therein adapted tocontrol the flow of electricity from said button member to said seriesof light members, such that individual ones of said series of lightmembers can be turned on and off at chosen intervals.
 5. The improvedumbrella of claim 1, wherein said elongated shaft member furtherincludes a releasable retainer located on a lower section thereof inproximity to said handle member, and adapted to releasably retain saidring member to thereby hold said canopy member in said collapsedposition around said elongated shaft member for storage.
 6. The improvedumbrella of claim 1, wherein said handle member further includes a soundemitting member electrically to said button member and is adapted toemit a sound when said button is pushed twice.
 7. The improved umbrellaof claim 1, wherein said sound is an emergency alarm.
 8. The improvedumbrella of claim 4, wherein said series of light members can be turnedon and off at chosen intervals to signal an emergency.
 9. The improvedumbrella of claim 1, wherein said canopy member is formed from aflexible fabric.
 10. The improved umbrella of claim 9, wherein saidflexible fabric is chosen from a group of flexible fabric consisting ofnylon, plastic, and cotton.
 11. The improved umbrella of claim 1,wherein said rib members and said stretcher members are formed from amaterial chosen from a group of materials consisting of stainless steel,plastic, and aluminum.
 12. The improved umbrella of claim 1, whereinsaid elongated shaft member is formed from a material chosen from agroup of materials consisting of stainless steel, plastic, aluminum,wood, fiberglass, and ceramic.
 13. The improved umbrella of claim 1,wherein said power source is formed as at least one battery member. 14.The improved umbrella of claim 13, wherein said at least one batterymember is rechargeable.